RayClem's Blade Evaluations

So the best Thins are the ones with the Japanese flag? I have one left from Vietnam. It's not that good. Filoso much better.

Just my .02¢ on comaprisons/similarities between guitars and some things about blades I have seen discussed here:

1. Coatings. I have seen some discussion on blades changing with the wearing off of the coatings used. I have seen RayClem mention some blades may get sharper as the coating wears off. A lot of guitarists believe the sound/tone of guitar strings can change as the coating wears off. No one wants old, dirty strings, but some will change strings before a gig or recording to make sure the strings are "broken in". That meaning they are stretched a bit so they hold better tune, and some believe it takes the edge or bite off the strings when they are new. Some believe they sound harsher or at least the highs do.

2. Production year. I just happened to see this mentioned on Wizamet blades as well as others. And some razors also like the Muhle R41. Owning many guitars, having sold them for close to 17 years, and having many friend enthusiast/collector/players, I have heard the talk/debate over production years. Don't buy this year, buy this one. Specifically Gibson guitars because I own a few and know many collectors. They seem to have had periods of production that collectors and some players prefer to avoid. I do remember one production year as I was selling that was particularly not the best and I wouldn't buy one. A lot of people were bringing in new guitars for basic work that should never have been needed buy a guitar at that price point. Workmanship and finishes were poor and it was well known.

     So, those is just my thoughts on some separate hobby similarities. And yes. Just as you need that razor in copper, stainless, and aluminum, you need that same guitar in blue, red, and black.

As someone who spent my entire career in the paper industry, I can tell you that quality changes over time for any manufacturing process. Sometimes quality improves as specifications are changed or tolerances are tightened. Sometimes quality deteriorates as production equipment wears. In the razor blade manufacturing process, the tolerances are extremely tight. Things occur that are too small to see with the naked eye. As tooling wears over time, the dimensions will change ever so slightly. As bearings wear, the blade quality will be affected. Sometimes there might be a major change such as moving a brand to a new production line as is now occurring with Gillette blades being moved from PPI to China or India. In some cases, that might improve quality as mush of the production machinery at PPI was older equipment. However, in other cases, a blade might be produced on more than one production line and quality differs slightly between the two lines.  Even if the machinery were made off the same set of blueprints, the results might differ slightly.

In the papers industry, we often made the same grade of paper on two different paper machines or even in two different paper mills. There were always slight differences between them. I spent the last half of my career in technical field service providing assistance to customers. We often found that specific customers sometimes got better results using paper from one mill or paper machine than another, so we tried to work with production planning to get paper from the preferred location whenever possible.

Most of us are only evaluating the performance of a few razor blades from a single tuck or perhaps a single lot. Because of tolerances in manufacturing specifications, we never know whether the blades we evaluate at one end of the tolerances or at the median. That is why I might try some blades and get entirely different results than someone else.

Very interesting read. We think of wear and tear on the items we use, but don't put much though into the machinery/tools that make them. Everything wears down. And, yes, as thourough and consistent as we try to be, or you certainly did in your evaluations, it is from just one tuck or specific batch of product. Thus, this can also play into others experiences with the same blade perhaps made at a different date or plant/machine. Something to consider.

Thanks for the input Ray, I think people would be surprised if they knew how much everything varied from batch to batch. I’m always the weirdo in the store looking over a new item/tool and digging through the ones they have in stock to see if I can spot any differences between them and choose the one I like the look of the best.

I also notice this with food everyday. I’ve mentioned it to many people and most people never notice it but the dates on food you buy changes the taste as well. One date of Coke or Gatorade may taste slightly different then another date. I’ve noticed a huge variance in a peanut butter I like. Milk seems to be fairly consistent if it’s from the same brand each time. But most foods have a slight change from date to date. I guess my taste buds are sensitive enough to notice it.

Erk, I’ll let you know how I like the Super Thins. Since I like 95% of Gillette DE blades I’ve tried I’m sure I’ll like these as well. I just hope they stand out above most. I love finding great blades like that.

I also seen Connaughts updated the Swedes from out of stock to having 100. I think they wait until the stock is 0 before adding more to their online inventory so if someone orders 80 of them it would say 20 left until someone bought the last 20 and then they’d add it back to 100 again. They are probably low in stock of these and don’t want any one person to buy their entire stock. I purchased 200 Personna Injector blades which was all they had and today they say they have 200 again.

I recently ordered what looks to be vintage Kai blades. They are stainless steel with plasmam coating. What is plasmam? I have no idea.

In addition, I have a Twin blade DE setup in a Baili BD176 with a modern Kai blade on the bottom, Savier shim then a Vietnam Super Thin (Japan Steel) on top then the topcap. Someone compared this Baili head (also RR Teck II and V2M heads) to an Old Type with a guard, It bends the blade quite a bit and is rather mild. But with two blades, it is much more efficient. My first shave was pretty rough, but the second was much improved, quite efficient. The wider Kai and normal Gillette blade tag team mows em down.

I am not sure the juice is worth the squeeze, but it is interesting. Time will tell if the two blades is better than, one.

You better be careful with that kind of thinking. Pretty soon you will be waiting to use Dorco Pace 6 razors with six blades.

I started shaving in the mid 60s when the the transition from carbon steel to coated stainless blades was just beginning. Around that time Schick came out with their bonded twin blades for the Schick injector razor. I had a Type L which could load the twin blades. Soon thereafter, Gillette came out with the TracII twin blade cartridge razor. I always thought that the twin blades doubled the efficiency of the razor, but also doubled the potential for irritation.

Now you can purchase cartridge razor with up to six blade such as the Dorco Pace 6. Gillette has not moved beyond 5. The question is, at what point does the relationship between efficiency and irritation no longer make sense. For me, I much prefer a four pass shave with a single super-sharp blade to one or two pass with a multi-blade razor. But to each his own. Many men love the quick shave of a cartridge razor. Being retired, saving a few minutes during the shave is not important.

You better be careful with that kind of thinking. Pretty soon you will be waiting to use Dorco Pace 6 razors with six blades.

I started shaving in the mid 60s when the the transition from carbon steel to coated stainless blades was just beginning. Around that time Schick came out with their bonded twin blades for the Schick injector razor. I had a Type L which could load the twin blades. Soon thereafter, Gillette came out with the TracII twin blade cartridge razor. I always thought that the twin blades doubled the efficiency of the razor, but also doubled the potential for irritation.

Now you can purchase cartridge razor with up to six blade such as the Dorco Pace 6. Gillette has not moved beyond 5. The question is, at what point does the relationship between efficiency and irritation no longer make sense. For me, I much prefer a four pass shave with a single super-sharp blade to one or two pass with a multi-blade razor. But to each his own. Many men love the quick shave of a cartridge razor. Being retired, saving a few minutes during the shave is not important.

Hey, I was a Dorco Pace 7 user!!! I found them and switched form the more expensive Mach 3 carts. They had worked well for me at the time. I was using them when I discovered traditional wet shaving. I did use them again briefly doing 2 pass (WTG, ATG) shaves and got good results. sticking with a brush and quality soap/creams. It was about saving time I suppose, but the savings isn't really big. a traditional 3 pass shave doesn't take me that long. Now, the photo shoot, prep, and cleanup is another story!

Occasionally I use a Dorco twin blade razor at the gym with Cremo brushless shave creme for a quick double pass shave.

It is the worst shave I get in recent memory. Horrible.

Occasionally I use a Dorco twin blade razor at the gym with Cremo brushless shave creme for a quick double pass shave. 

It is the worst shave I get in recent memory.  Horrible.

I have never tried the Dorco cartridge razors. If the blades are as sharp as the Dorco Prime blade, they should work well.

I have found that Cremo shave cream works reasonably well if you mix it with water. When I travel, I carry a tube of Cremo and an inexpensive synthetic brush. I grab a coffee cup from the hotel, add some Cremo and a little water and whip up a proto lather with the brush. When mixed with water, Cremo is super slick, but not as protective as a quality shave soap. Try doing that and see if it elevates your shave.

Occasionally I use a Dorco twin blade razor at the gym with Cremo brushless shave creme for a quick double pass shave. 

It is the worst shave I get in recent memory.  Horrible.

I have never tried the Dorco cartridge razors. If the blades are as sharp as the Dorco Prime blade, they should work well.

I have found that Cremo shave cream works reasonably well if you mix it with water. When I travel, I carry a tube of Cremo and an inexpensive synthetic brush. I grab a coffee cup from the hotel, add some Cremo and a little water and whip up a proto lather with the brush. When mixed with water, Cremo is super slick, but not as protective as a quality shave soap. Try doing that and see if it elevates your shave.

The Dorco razors supplied by the gym are disposable twin blades with a fixed head. The Cremo instructions say to wet your beard, apply a few dabs to your face and then keep working water into it with your cupped hand so it is fully spread out into a watery film. I have not tried it with a brush. If I am gong to use a brush I may as well use a standard shave soap and face lather. I am going to finish the tube so I have really tried to work with it. I think if you have a very light beard, and can get by with a single pass it might work OK because it is slick. But for anybody else, I just don't see the point of it.

Occasionally I use a Dorco twin blade razor at the gym with Cremo brushless shave creme for a quick double pass shave. 

It is the worst shave I get in recent memory.  Horrible.

I have never tried the Dorco cartridge razors. If the blades are as sharp as the Dorco Prime blade, they should work well.

I have found that Cremo shave cream works reasonably well if you mix it with water. When I travel, I carry a tube of Cremo and an inexpensive synthetic brush. I grab a coffee cup from the hotel, add some Cremo and a little water and whip up a proto lather with the brush. When mixed with water, Cremo is super slick, but not as protective as a quality shave soap. Try doing that and see if it elevates your shave.

The Dorco razors supplied by the gym are disposable twin blades with a fixed head. The Cremo instructions say to wet your beard, apply a few dabs to your face and then keep working water into it with your cupped hand so it is fully spread out into a watery film. I have not tried it with a brush. If I am gong to use a brush I may as well use a standard shave soap and face lather. I am going to finish the tube so I have really tried to work with it. I think if you have a very light beard, and can get by with a single pass it might work OK because it is slick. But for anybody else, I just don't see the point of it.

Cremo is no bueno for me. Quite slick though.

(Vintage?) Kai blades have been delivered. Will know how they are soon enough.